Colors of Paradise - Antigua, Guatemala

Take an afternoon to stroll up and down the streets of Antigua. You'll see a beautiful city and all it has to offer. So much of what makes Antigua great you can take in visually.

If you have a few days, head off to the nearby market of Chichicastenango, climb one of the surrounding active volcanoes, visit the textile museum Casa del Tejido Antiguo, wander in the butterfly enclosure in Jocotenango, enjoy all things macademia at the Valhalla nut farm, and by all means, take the time to sample the various restaurants in Antigua. There are some amazing finds...

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Antigua is really a small town. The best way to get around is by walking. That way you can see all the hidden courtyards, stalls of crafts, and colorful walls, and meet the locals and enjoy the views of Volcan Agua overlooking the city.

I enjoyed the Posada La Merced. It is located, of course, near El Merced church, which is a part of town I was familiar with and liked. I got a wonderful room that faced a quiet courtyard. The bed was extremely comfortable, with extra pillows and clean, nice-looking bedding. The furniture was ample and of good quality. The room's wall color, bedding, and furnishings all went well together. I spent $18 a night and felt I should have been paying more considering the quality of the room. The bathroom was spotless and included nice touches, like a tiled floor and an oversized shower with plenty of hot water.

I spent 4 nights at the hotel, and although I was rather sick during my stay, the staff was patient and helpful. I never heard a word from them, even though I took long showers at all hours when I couldn't sleep. I appreciated their friendly service and plan to go back.

As planned I went back to Posada La Merced in March 2005. This time I stayed in a single room (Room #34). It was on the 3rd floor with a view of Antiguan rooftops and was charming in appearance and comfort. I met the hotel owner Gail, who was very nice and remembered me through our back-and-forth emails. Over email, I was quoted anywhere between US$21.50 and US$48.80 for a double room. I couldn't figure out why there was such a difference in the prices so I finally settled on two single rooms for myself and my father at US$16/night apiece. Our bathrooms were ridiculously small but clean. Bottled water is provided, and there are fans in each room.

Here's their website (with lots of photos):

Posada La Merced Website

Or you can email posadalamerced@hotmail.com

I stayed at Posada del Sol for a total of five nights during the month of March 2005. It's a lovely little hotel on the quiet Calle Nazarenes on the northern end of Antigua.

The hotel consists of seven large, nicely decorated rooms. All have three beds: two doubles and a single, or two singles and a double. In each room is also a desk and chair, a wardrobe, and local wood carvings or textiles on the walls. I stayed in rooms #5 and #7, both of which were upstairs and overlooked a pretty courtyard and flowers. The rooms were very clean and had small televisions and bottles of water. The bathrooms were small and clean, and the hotel provided fresh towels each day. There was hot water, but in #7, it was hotter and ran longer than in #5, which had a different kind of shower system.

Only concerns: It was sometimes easy to hear noisy neighbors, because everyone seems to keep their windows open at night in March. And also, the windows themselves at the Posada had no screens, so beware of little critters that can fly in at night and leave you itchy in the morning!

Bald-headed 'Nesto' runs the front desk and is very helpful. He doesn't speak any English but is a very patient communicator. He answered my email (in Spanish) before I arrived, and I was able to make reservations easily with him. They charge US$35 dollars each night but lower the price to $30 if you stay with them three nights or more, whether or not they're consecutive nights.

Email: posadsol@hotmail.com

I chose Cafe Rocio on my first night in Antigua because my guidebook said this place was 'more than highly recommended', and I was after a good, hot meal after an overnight flight into Antigua from Northern California. It wasn't busy, which surprised me, and so I was seated alone at a small table near a courtyard where a caged canary sang: very tranquilo. At first, I was disappointed that I was at an Asian restaurant in Guatemala, but when my Thai noodles with tofu and veggies arrived (Q53 with a beverage), I immediately agreed with the recommendation and gobbled up as much as my stomach would allow. The noodles were served with zucchini, green onion, carrots and green beans in a barely spicy and very rich peanut sauce.

The best part, I think, was Carlos the waiter, who delivered excellent service and who actually sat with me to teach me about Antigua and to give me advice, along with a nice map of the town. Not only that, but Carlos waved to me every day as I passed by and remembered me by name. I plan to return there for a scrumptious meal when I go back to Antigua in March 2005, and maybe I'll even see Carlos again!

Update March 2005: On my latest trip in Guatemala, I went back to Cafe Rocio. Carlos was working and remembered me from two years ago! I ordered the delicious Thai noodles again. My father ordered a mouth-watering plate of Honey Ginger Chicken for Q48 that was served with rice and a Thai salad. The iced tea I ordered was a delightful sweetened canela (cinnamon) tea, and my father had a licuado (like a smoothie). For Q15, you can order a licuado with almost any fruit and choose whether you want it blended with milk, water, yogurt or orange juice. They're delicious! We finished with a fabulous Mora Crisp desert for Q15: hot blackberries over cold vanilla ice cream. A perfect finale! And even though we were eating there on busy Palm Sunday, we were given the same attention and good service that I experienced two years ago.

If you're like me and read about one of Guatemala’s seafood specialties, 'ceviche', you'll want to head to Peroleto. Ceviche is a mix of raw fish or shellfish, chopped fresh onion, tomato, and cilantro, all marinated in lime juice, which magically 'cooks' what was raw. Peroleto is north of the bus station and market on Avenida Santa Lucia—it’s a fine cafe that serves up a mean ceviche. I learned that ceviche is a daytime thing, so head over for lunch.

They served me at dinner anyway, but I was the only one eating the dish. They'll let you choose what types of seafood you'd like in your ceviche. Each addition costs a fraction of a dollar more. I chose shrimp and caracol (snail).

Do not try to order a milk-based beverage, even though Peroleto offers them. Your waiter should warn you, like mine did, that milk and ceviche will "blow up" in your stomach. Of course, they suggested a cold bottle of Gallo, the local beer. Besides beer, I happily munched my ceviche with saltines and added ketchup, worsteshire sauce, and salsa picante to the ceviche at various stages during the meal. It was all I had hoped for. Beyond the great food, there was good conversation with folks who were there, I think, mainly for the Gallo at that hour. I saw many tourists pop in, but locals dominated. I must have continued ordering, because with all the Gallo in me, I tripped over each cobblestone on the walk home.

Peroleto is a must-try!

Fernando's Kaffee is the place to grab a delicious breakfast and an exquisite cup of Guatemalan coffee. The price is right and service is friendly and quick. The gray-haired owner of the place is a sweet woman who cheerfully greets each visitor and calls them all corazon.

For breakfast there are several options, like the tipico for Q10 (slightly over $1) that consists of two eggs over tortillas with delicious black beans and fried plantains. This is served with tortillas or bread. If you want onions and tomatoes scrambled into your eggs, add another Q2 (or $0.25). The Americano breakfast comes with two eggs scrambled with ham and cheese, bread, and fresh fruit. It costs a bit more at Q20.

This café is coffee heaven. They serve lattes and mochas (Q10) that rival any you've tasted in the States. They also have a full juice bar. Almost any combination of fruit and vegetable juices you can imagine can be ordered: my dad had a pineapple/celery mix.

Like everything in Guatemala, there is always a bit of the unexpected. Instead of onions in my eggs, I got bell pepper. And instead of ham on his plate one morning, my dad got slices of salami. Still, we were so happy with our full bellies and all other aspects of our experience there that we wouldn't dream of mentioning the humorous substitutions.

Ambience, ambience, ambience!!

Da Vinci's is a gem of a restaurant in Antigua. Every item on Da Vinci's menu will tempt you because they combine ingredients so creatively. Our meal here exceeded all others that we experienced in Antigua - in taste and quality.

The restaurant is absolutely beautiful. Seating flows into various dining rooms, the walls are covered in Da Vinci art, and gilded life-size angels dangle from above. All the furniture is antique, and candles are lit at night to create a mysterious parlor atmosphere.

I ordered the amazing chuletas amareto (Q65), which were smoked pork chops smothered in a perfect pear-and-apple chutney served with buttered whipped potatoes and local vegetables. My father ordered pollo de gioconda (Q70), broiled chicken breasts in a tangerine-and-bleu cheese sauce.

The service was attentive but serious, complimenting the mood of the restaurant. Da Vinci's could serve as a romantic date location or a quiet place to savor the distinct flavors not found elsewhere in Antigua.

Believe it or not, it's hard to find good, authentic Guatemalan fare in Antigua, and that's exactly what I wanted! La Fonda de la Calle Real is definitely the place to taste delicious Guatemalan dishes from around the country.

La Fonda is apparently so popular that there are three restaurants in the town of Antigua alone. I chose to eat at the original and smallest restaurant, "La Fondita" on Avenida 5, between the famous yellow arch and the central plaza. The downstairs salon has a few seats but is dominated by the dark-wood antique bar. Up an ancient solid-wood staircase, there are plenty of tables, the walls are painted with quirky quotes, and several double doors open up on to tiny balconies that overlook the street. I was able to sit near the balconies both times I dined there. I especially enjoyed the view on Palm Sunday, when hundreds of people moved excitedly below us on their way to catch the latest holy procession move through the beautiful streets decorated with carpets of flowers and colored sand.

The first meal I had at La Fonda was the Comal de Recados (Q50). It was the perfect choice because it was a sample of three typical dishes. Kak'Iq is a traditional soup from the Coban region of Guatemala, made with turkey in a mint and cilantro broth. Rich and hearty, it goes down like a stew, and the flavors are unique and unforgettable. Pepian is a dish made with chicken pieces in a slightly spicy tomato-based sauce. And the third dish is, like the others, a saucy stew, with pieces of pork head and liver in a meaty brown gravy.

It was an incredible and satisfying meal, served with a bowl of seasoned rice with bits of vegetable and a corn tamale. I found the pork dish a little harder to eat, probably because I was imagining the kind of body parts I was chewing, but my dad happily ate his and the rest of mine. To drink, I had a large glass of the refreshing red jugo de Jamaica (Q16), and my dad had a bottle of Guatemala's national beer (Q18), Gallo.

On our second visit, I enjoyed a Guatemalan chile relleno (Q45) served with their yummy seasoned rice and a huge dollop of guacamole. Unlike a Mexican chile relleno, the Guatemalan variety is a mild bell pepper stuffed with meat and spices. Dad had a plate of spicy pork sausages with rice and guac on the side (Q46).

Both were tasty, but we were impressed more by our initial visit and the delightful tastes of Kak'Iq and Pepian. La Fonda has location, atmosphere, value, and above all, it provides the true taste of Guatemala; anyone visiting Antigua should put La Fonda on their list.

See La Fonda de la Calle Real's website or email lafondareal@conexion.com.gt

.

Everywhere you go in Guatemala, you see signs with the little yellow chicken of Pollo Campero on them. They're everywhere, the McDonald’s of Central America. Yet, their menu is a lot more like KFC. In the States, I don't eat fast food. But I had to try Campero. Why? Because I've heard that Guatemalans love their Campero chicken so much that when they visit family members in the States, they will actually pack some up to take with them!

Pollo Campero in Antigua must be one of the biggest restaurants in town. It is huge! There is a beautiful full-size fountain when you walk in the door, a take-out section to the left, and a full dining room in the back. My dad and I were a little surprised to have a friendly waitress attend to us at our table and take our drink orders.

The menu had many selections. There were three kinds of chicken to choose from-- regular, crispy, and rotisserie. All were available in combos, which seemed to be the best deal. Regular combos were Q29 and included two pieces of chicken, rolls, french fries, and a Pepsi. Super combos were also available that included more chicken and a choice of two side dishes: coleslaw, french fries, or mashed potatoes with gravy. Dad and I were happy with the looks of the regular combo. I had the regular chicken and he had the rotisserie.

I expected the taste and quality of the fast food I used to eat in the States, but I was happily surprised by Pollo Campero. There was something about their flavorful batter that made me think this chain could put KFC under. It was delicious chicken! God only knows how unhealthy it was, but my taste buds were in heaven. The side dishes were mediocre, and Pepsi was just a Pepsi, but just tasting that good fried chicken made the trip so worthwhile for an ex-fast food junkie. Mmm...

And rumor has it that Pollo Campero is coming to the States! I found their website.

Climbing Pacaya was a great experience. It's safe and secure going with a tour company and yet you're able to appreciate the nice hike on your own.

You begin in a small village called San Francisco de Sales, which is likely highly dependant on the revenue it receives from tourists’ entrance fees. Children and women are at the ready to sell you plasticos para la lluvia (rain ponchos) and bottled water for the way up and cold drinks and snacks on your way down. A troupe of starving dogs even made the climb with our group and were rewarded with bits of our lunches.

The trail at first winds through a lovely shaded forest, allowing to see the peaks of Pacaya up ahead and of Antigua in the distance, along with the volcanoes that surround it. I was out of breath quickly, and although it was cool, I broke a good sweat.

Eventually we burst from this forest into a desolate landscape that looked out of this world. It was all volcanic rock and sand. It was possible to see where past eruptions had done their worst damage.

Trudging up the bare cone was the worst. The sand slipped away under each step and the climb was very steep. As progress was made, the smell of sulfur wafted through the air, and eventually, small vents of steam could be seen along the cone's trail.

At the summit you could stand right at the lip of the active belching crater (if you could hold your breath or stand the awful fumes). There were no fences, railings, or warnings posted like you'd find in the US. Away from the smell, I sat down to eat my granola bar and bag of peanuts I bought from the supermercado the day before.

The way down really was out of this world! You could run down the crater, making huge leaps because your steps were always cradled by the soft cone's material. It felt like I was weightless - the best part of the day I think!

I enjoyed the rest of the way down, daydreamed about my next adventure, and guzzled another water before napping against my soft backpack on the ride home.

Antigua is famous for its abundance of language schools. I was lucky enough to come to Guatemala knowing a lot about these schools and what I wanted from one: intensive instruction, value, a home stay with a local family, and extra activities to back up my language learning. I chose the Instituto because it presented all of these things. The school itself is located at 1a Calle Poniente #10, very near the La Merced church.

For about $130/week, my lessons, room, and board were covered. I enjoyed private lessons with a different instructor each week, free field trips in the afternoons, a nearby home stay with wonderful people (a great way to reinforce my Spanish study), and the welcome hot coffee or tea each morning on the school patio with other students. I made fast friends, but it didn't take away from my classes.

What I really liked about the school was how much work they did to accommodate the students. I asked for lots of homework to practice with, so my maestro made sure each day to have handouts and activities ready for me.

Each afternoon, there were trips and activities at the school —all for free—and the best part was that, through the school, I ended up seeing all that I wanted to in and around Antigua: the Butterfly Enclosure near Jocotenango, the Valhalla Macadamia Nut Farm (where I got a macadamia nut oil facial!) outside of town, the evil saint Maximon in San Andres Ixtapa, and a climb to the Cerro de la Cruz overlook of Antigua! When we weren't exploring, there was music, dancing, and movies at the school.

It was an overall good experience, I must say. Attending a language school is a fabulous and affordable way to spend a few weeks in the lovely town of Antigua.